The Weekly Courier

April 6, 2023

Prepare Your Heart...

Before you hear Mark and our Praise Team sing "This I Believe" by Ben Fielding and Matt Crocker, check out this performance of the song at the Hillsong Music Conference in Sydney Australia in 2014. This stirring piece is based on the Apostles Creed.

Click on the picture --> 

A Notice on Wearing Fragrance in Worship

Some people in our church family are sensitive or allergic to the chemicals in fragrances. They may experience breathing problems, headaches, migraines, or other symptoms. Scents are in colognes, hair products, lotions, soaps, or laundry products. So, please be thoughtful and consider using less fragrance when attending church gatherings. Thanks!

How to Order Easter Flowers

Your deadline to order is TODAY April 6th.

Our recent tradition here at First Olympia includes decorating the chancel on Easter morning with many beautiful blooming plants!

We invite you to join in sponsoring the Easter floral display. If you would like to help sponsor the flowers this year, please complete the form below (or fill out a hard copy in the church office) along with your gift of $20 or more. The names of those honored and remembered will be named in worship on Easter Sunday.

After worship, you are welcome to take a plant home with you. Thank you for your generosity! You can order flowers with the link below.

https://fumcoly.breezechms.com/form/easterflowers2023

There's Still Time to Sign Up for the Easter Vigil

On Holy Saturday, we remember the time between Jesus' death and resurrection; the time in which Jesus was dead and buried. It is tempting to skip from Palm Sunday, where we shout hosanna in welcome of our messiah-king, to Easter, where we shout Alleluia in celebration of Christ's resurrection. But, between Palm Sunday and Easter, a whole host of events take place for Jesus, and for us as his disciples.

After we remember Judas' betrayal of Jesus on Wednesday during Midweek Worship, and the crucifixion of Jesus on Good Friday, we invite you sign up to hold vigil for one hour for 'Holy Saturday,' in recognition and honor of the very real grief and loss of the day in which Jesus was dead and buried.

We know now that Jesus was ultimately resurrected and ascended to God, but the first disciples did not have that foreknowledge. On Holy Saturday, we enter into the experience of the first disciples, imagining and empathizing with their grief at the loss of their friend and teacher, and the existential grief at the state of the world: that we would crucify the messiah.

You are invited to sign up to hold vigil for one hour on the Portico (front entrance) at the church, or somewhere else (like at home!) if you're not able to be present in person between 10am on Saturday, April 8th and 10am on Sunday, April 9th. Two people can sign up for each hour (though there can be more than that, if you want to bring a friend or family member with you). People from other cooperative churches will be holding vigil at their church sites as well, and together, in body and in spirit, we will hold vigil until we enter into Easter worship, shouting Alleluia! Christ is Risen!

Please sign up here: https://forms.gle/wArSQGq6J9uc1iba6

If you have any questions, please ask Pastor Alexa

Support The Hunger Walk

First United Methodist is once again supporting Thurston's Hunger Walk - an annual fundraiser to help two local agencies (The Community Kitchen & The Thurston County Food Bank) get food to those in need. Millions of Americans who had their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits boosted because of the pandemic, saw those boosts expire at the end of February. That means less money to spend on food each month, even as inflation remains near 40-year highs. Your donations to support our hungry neighbors are now more important than ever!

This year’s walk will take place at Lacey's Huntamer Park, Sunday May 7th beginning sharply at 3:00 pm.

Enjoy camaraderie and live music while you walk as little or as much as you like. Give What You Can - Walk If You Want! You can donate through our "team" site https://app.99pledges.com/fund/thurston2023/first-united-methodist For more info and to see what other teams are participating check out www.thurstonhungerwalk.com.

This year we're also hoping to send a team of walkers (all ages welcome!) but we need to gauge interest as well as locate a "walk coordinator" for our team. If you would like to walk and/or learn more about the (very easy!) coordinator role please complete this form before April 14: https://fumcoly.breezechms.com/form/ade1d6.

Please consider passing this on to your friends to have them help support our effort in practicing generosity. If you prefer, you could make out a check to: Thurston's Hunger Walk and mail it to: Thurston County Food Bank, 220 Thurston Ave, NE, Olympia, WA 98501 with FUM in the memo line.

Thanks for stepping up to help lessen hunger in Thurston County!

Affinity Nights Are Coming Back!

As you may well know, our focus for this year has been connection. The pandemic, in particular, has disconnected us in so many ways that it made us worry about whether we would ever feel connected to others, to God, and to the wider community in the same way again. We are seeking to combat that worry, and facilitate connection through Affinity Nights this Spring! You may remember our winter iteration of Affinity Nights, and it was so successful, we are going to start them up again for 8 weeks this spring. 

We will continue to have a potluck dinner all together at 6pm, and will send folks off to their desired class, affinity group, activity, or other gathering at 7pm. Spring Affinity Nights will begin Wednesday, April 19th!

More information is forthcoming, but the ask right now is this: 

Could your team, group, or class start meeting on Wednesday nights? We'd love to have full tables, crossover between affinity groups in the church, and a building full of resources and opportunities for those already and not yet connected to our church, easily accessible and consistently available. If this is something you are interested in knowing more about, and/or would like for your group to plan to meet Wednesday nights (does not have to be every Wednesday night) please talk with Pastor Alexa ([email protected]). 

Affinity Nights - LGBTQ Inclusion Class

FUMCO is a Reconciling congregation, meaning we affirm and include LGBTQ people into the whole life of our church. This fact continues to draw in many people, as a non-negotiable feature of the faith community they seek. Our church went through this process not in spite of what the Bible says, but because of it. 

If you love God and the Bible, love LGBTQ people as well, and want to know about how we interpret the Bible with that spirit of love, we invite you to join Pastor Alexa for "The Biblical Case for LGBTQ Inclusion: Sexual Orientation."

This Spring, on Wednesday (Affinity!) Nights, we will be guided by Matthew Vines, the Executive Director of The Reformation Project through a series of videos, and Pastor Alexa will facilitate conversation and further study. 

You can watch a trailer for this study here: https://youtu.be/bAVj6gFovm0 

(LGBTQ inclusion is not limited to sexual orientation, of course, so, in the fall, we will continue this study looking at Gender. We'll keep you posted!) 

When: Wednesdays 4/19 - 6/7

Sign Up Here: https://fumcoly.breezechms.com/form/lgbtqinclusion

March-April Upper Rooms

March and April issues of the Upper Room are ready for pick-up for $1.00! You may get yours on a Sunday morning, before or after worship. Or, swing by the church Monday-Thursday, 10am-2pm.

Morning Prayer Team

For prayer opportunities with your church friends, join the Morning Prayer team, Monday-Saturday at 9:00am. Access our Zoom Link right here or directly email the church office.

UWIF Rummage Sale Update

We've counted up all the names of those who signed in for the United Women in Faith rummage sale: there were 77 names on the lists in addition to the Boy Scouts who helped break boxes down, helped pack up, move boxes and bags and helped transport what was left to Value Village. And thanks to Lauren for the great pictures she shared with the congregation. It really does take a “village” (a great church congregation) and friends to make it happen. 

We raised over $13,000 dollars to help women and children locally and worldwide. The dates for next year rummage sale (2024) will be March 8 and 9^th.  

We received a lot of positive feedback on how organized and clean our sale was for those who came to shop. We donated items to Habitat for Humanities, OUCC book sale, prison ministry, and put free items out by the road that disappeared quickly. Thanks to all who helped. We couldn’t do it without you! 

Carol Gruen, President UWIF

Friendship Hiker Upcoming Dates

Hi Friendship hikers, here's information about our next hike this Saturday, April 8th. We'll head out of town a bit to Frye Cove Park, located in the Steamboat Island area. 

We've mapped a modest 2 mile walk through the peaceful forest and along the edge of Eld Inlet and Frye Cove. If it's clear we could get lucky and see a view of Mt Rainier beyond the water. The path is mostly wide and even, with some ups and downs, and one small section where the path narrows. We'll either walk in the late morning or early afternoon, depending on how the weather is looking. Pets are allowed if leashed.

Please let me know if you'd like to join in, and if you are willing to help drive as part of carpooling. Looking ahead, here's dates to save: May 20, June 17 and July 8 (always Saturdays).  Locations TBD but by then we'll head more into the mountains, going longer and higher :) Let us know if you're planning to join us on April 8th.

Thanks all!

Mae  Wharton ([email protected])

2023 Community Garden Workdays

Tumwater UMC's garden is growing! They have completed their first phase, a community garden where community members can reserve a garden plot for their own use through the season. Phase two is now under construction! They have a 20x60 ft area, divided into beds and a hillside as well.

All the produce from the food bank garden will go to the Thurston County Food Bank. They need help moving dirt, trimming trees, planting, weeding, harvesting, labeling beds and setting up our watering system, among other things. You are invited to several work parties over the summer to complete and tend to this second phase! All workdays are Saturday mornings from 9am-noon.

To learn more about Tumwater's Community Garden visit: https://www.tumwaterumc.org/community-garden

April 8th , Saturday, Church workday. Food Bank Garden.

May 13th, Saturday, Food Bank Garden

June 24th , Saturday, Garden Workday, Food Bank Garden

July 8th, Saturday, Garden Workday, Food Bank Garden

August 5th , Saturday, Garden Workday, Harvest and cleanup

September 9th, Saturday, Garden Workday, harvest and cleanup

October 7th, Saturday, Garden Workday, Put the gardens to bed

A Refugee Ministry Opprotunity

Janet Manguna, one of our refugee moms is learning English and looking for someone someone to read the Bible with her. One of her goals in life is to be able to read the Bible in English eventually. She has come a long way in her English classes at SPSCC over the last 4 years. She is now able to work at McDonalds and she is still going to school. 

The best times for her are Sunday afternoons or Monday mornings. If you (or someone you know) are interested in reading with Janet, please reach out to Becca Brandt ([email protected]). We hope to hear from you soon!

Life of the Church

On Sunday, we had a wonderful Palm Sunday service full of many 'Hosannas' and waving palms. It was an incredible ways to celebrate the beginning of Holy Week.

In other exciting news, we had FOUR tech volunteers in the booth! We are proud to offer weekly livestreams and it's thanks to these folks who make it possible (but we always have room for more on the team). Thank you!

You can find more photos from these events (and many more) on our Facebook page: 

https://www.facebook.com/FUMCOLY

Want YOUR Article In The Courier?

If you're looking to remind members of our church community about an upcoming event, updates on existing ministries, or even brand new opportunities, this newsletter is a great place to start! Here's a few tips for how to ensure your news gets out in time:

• Write a short paragraph with all the essential information you need people to know (the when/where's/and what to brings of the event)
• Send your article to our multimedia coordinator, Lauren ([email protected]). If you have a relevant photo you want included, feel free to send that along too.
• Send your article at least THREE WEEKS before your event! We run articles for two weeks and since The Courier goes out on Thursdays, we want to make sure everyone has plenty of time to read your announcement.

If you have news, we'd love to help you share it!

Our Welcoming Statement

First United Methodist Church of Olympia welcomes people of all ages, all abilities,

all sexual orientations and gender identities, all nationalities and ethnicities,

the poor and the rich, single people and the many forms of family.

See our Church Calendar.

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Contact us ...

by phone: 360-943-2661 by email: [email protected]

OFFICE HOURS: Sunday 9am-noon | Monday-Thursday 10am-2pm

The Weekly Courier editor: Lauren Fontanilla